1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a device for generating three dimensional images, especially where the device is a compact device including a display on which computer-generated video holograms (CGHs) are encoded on two optically addressable spatial light modulators. The display generates three dimensional holographic reconstructions. The device has particular application in portable devices and in handheld devices, such as mobile telephones.
2. Technical Background
Computer-generated video holograms (CGHs) are encoded in one or more spatial light modulators (SLMs); the SLMs may include electrically or optically controllable cells. The cells modulate the amplitude and/or phase of light by encoding hologram values corresponding to a video-hologram. The CGH may be calculated e.g. by coherent ray tracing, by simulating the interference between light reflected by the scene and a reference wave, or by Fourier or Fresnel transforms. An ideal SLM would be capable of representing arbitrary complex-valued numbers, i.e. of separately controlling the amplitude and the phase of an incoming light wave. However, a typical SLM controls only one property, either amplitude or phase, with the undesirable side effect of also affecting the other property. There are different ways to modulate the light in amplitude or phase, e.g. electrically addressed liquid crystal SLM, optically addressed liquid crystal SLM, magneto-optical SLM, micro mirror devices or acousto-optic modulators. The modulation of the light may be spatially continuous or composed of individually addressable cells, one-dimensionally or two-dimensionally arranged, binary, multi-level or continuous.
In the present document, the term “encoding” denotes the way in which regions of a spatial light modulator are supplied with control values to encode a hologram so that a 3D-scene can be reconstructed from the SLM. By “SLM encoding a hologram” it is meant that a hologram is encoded on the SLM.
In contrast to purely auto-stereoscopic displays, with video holograms an observer sees an optical reconstruction of a light wave front of a three-dimensional scene. The 3D-scene is reconstructed in a space that stretches between the eyes of an observer and the spatial light modulator (SLM), or possibly even behind the SLM. The SLM can also be encoded with video holograms such that the observer sees objects of a reconstructed three-dimensional scene in front of the SLM and other objects on or behind the SLM.
The cells of the spatial light modulator are preferably transmissive cells which are passed through by light, the rays of which are capable of generating interference at least at a defined position and over a spatial coherence length of a few millimetres. This allows holographic reconstruction with an adequate resolution in at least one dimension. This kind of light will be referred to as ‘sufficiently coherent light’.
In order to ensure sufficient temporal coherence, the spectrum of the light emitted by the light source must be limited to an adequately narrow wavelength range, i.e. it must be near-monochromatic. The spectral bandwidth of high-brightness LEDs is sufficiently narrow to ensure temporal coherence for holographic reconstruction. The diffraction angle at the SLM is proportional to the wavelength, which means that only a monochromatic source will lead to a sharp reconstruction of object points. A broadened spectrum will lead to broadened object points and smeared object reconstructions. The spectrum of a laser source can be regarded as monochromatic. The spectral line width of a LED is sufficiently narrow to facilitate good reconstructions.
Spatial coherence relates to the lateral extent of the light source. Conventional light sources, like LEDs or Cold Cathode Fluorescent Lamps (CCFLs), can also meet these requirements if they radiate light through an adequately narrow aperture. Light from a laser source can be regarded as emanating from a point source within diffraction limits and, depending on the modal purity, leads to a sharp reconstruction of the object, i.e. each object point is reconstructed as a point within diffraction limits.
Light from a spatially incoherent source is laterally extended and causes a smearing of the reconstructed object. The amount of smearing is given by the broadened size of an object point reconstructed at a given position. In order to use a spatially incoherent source for hologram reconstruction, a trade-off has to be found between brightness and limiting the lateral extent of the source with an aperture. The smaller the light source, the better is its spatial coherence.
A line light source can be considered to be a point light source if seen from a right angle to its longitudinal extension. Light waves can thus propagate coherently in that direction, but incoherently in all other directions.
In general, a hologram reconstructs a scene holographically by coherent superposition of waves in the horizontal and the vertical directions. Such a video hologram is called a full-parallax hologram. The reconstructed object can be viewed with motion parallax in the horizontal and the vertical directions, like a real object. However, a large viewing angle requires high resolution in both the horizontal and the vertical direction of the SLM.
Often, the requirements on the SLM are lessened by restriction to a horizontal-parallax-only (HPO) hologram. The holographic reconstruction takes place only in the horizontal direction, whereas there is no holographic reconstruction in the vertical direction. This results in a reconstructed object with horizontal motion parallax. The perspective view does not change upon vertical motion. A HPO hologram requires less resolution of the SLM in the vertical direction than a full-parallax hologram. A vertical-parallax-only (VPO) hologram is also possible but uncommon. The holographic reconstruction occurs only in the vertical direction and results in a reconstructed object with vertical motion parallax. There is no motion parallax in the horizontal direction. The different perspective views for the left eye and right eye have to be created separately.
3. Discussion of Related Art
Typically, devices for generating three dimensional images have lacked compactness—i.e. they require complex and bulky optical systems that preclude their use in portable devices, or in handheld devices, such as mobile telephones. U.S. Pat. No. 4,208,086 for example describes a device for generating large three dimensional images, where the device is of the order of a meter in length. WO 2004/044659 (US2006/0055994), which is incorporated herein by reference, describes a device for reconstructing video three dimensional images with a depth in excess of ten centimetres. Such prior art devices are therefore too deep for mobile phones or other portable or handheld, small display devices.
WO 2004/044659 (US2006/0055994) filed by the applicant describes a device for reconstructing three-dimensional scenes by way of diffraction of sufficiently coherent light; the device includes a point light source or line light source, a lens for focusing the light and a spatial light modulator. In contrast to conventional holographic displays, the SLM in transmission mode reconstructs a 3D-scene in at least one ‘virtual observer window’ (see Appendix I and II for a discussion of this term and the related technology). Each virtual observer window is situated near the observer's eyes and is restricted in size so that the virtual observer windows are situated in a single diffraction order, so that each eye sees the complete reconstruction of the three-dimensional scene in a frustum-shaped reconstruction space, which stretches between the SLM surface and the virtual observer window. To allow a holographic reconstruction free of disturbance, the virtual observer window size must not exceed the periodicity interval of one diffraction order of the reconstruction. However, it must be at least large enough to enable a viewer to see the entire reconstruction of the 3D-scene through the window(s). The other eye can see through the same virtual observer window, or is assigned a second virtual observer window, which is accordingly created by a second light source. Here, a visibility region, which would typically be rather large, is limited to the locally positioned virtual observer windows. The known solution reconstructs in a diminutive fashion the large area resulting from a high resolution of a conventional SLM surface, reducing it to the size of the virtual observer windows. This leads to the effect that the diffraction angles, which are small due to geometrical reasons, and the resolution of current generation SLMs are sufficient to achieve a high-quality real-time holographic reconstruction using reasonable, consumer level computing equipment.
However, the known method of generating a three dimensional image exhibits the disadvantage that a large, voluminous, heavy and thus expensive lens is required for focusing due to the large SLM surface area. Consequently, the device wilt have a large depth and weight. Another disadvantage is represented by the fact that the reconstruction quality is reduced significantly due to aberrations at the margins (i.e. the edges) when using such large lenses. An improvement in which a light source including a lenticular array is used is disclosed in US 2006/250671, which is incorporated herein by reference, although the disclosure is for the case of large area video holograms.
A mobile phone which generates a three dimensional image is disclosed in US2004/0223049. However, the three dimensional image disclosed therein is generated using autostereoscopy. One problem with autostereoscopically generated three dimensional images is that typically the viewer perceives the image to be inside the display, whereas the viewer's eyes tend to focus on the surface of the display. This disparity between where the viewer's eyes focus and the perceived position of the three dimensional image leads to viewer discomfort after some time in many cases. This problem does not occur, or is significantly reduced, in the case of three dimensional images generated by holography.